Debates of May 26th, 1999

[The Speaker]

As is our practice on Wednesday we will now sing O Canada, and we will be led by the hon. member for Saint John.

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

[John Duncan, Reform, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Network is holding its annual seminar at the University of Victoria from July 29 to July 31.

RSD or complex regional pain syndrome is a puzzling disorder. According to the McGill pain index, back pain is rated 16, terminal cancer at 26, and RSD at 42.

It can occur after an injury, even a minor one. The injury appears to be healing but the pain intensifies. The sympathetic nervous system becomes overactive, causing continuous and spreading pain that can be unrelenting. Some commit suicide. However, detected in the first several months the syndrome often yields to treatment.

The network chooses to designate July as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Awareness Month.

Chinatrust

[Sophia Leung, Liberal, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to announce that Chinatrust Commercial Bank has opened its first Canadian branch in Vancouver.

Chinatrust is one of Taiwan's biggest financial institutions with assets of over $26 billion. We can see from Chinatrust that foreign banks can play an important role in creating jobs and strengthening the Canadian economy.

I would like to wish Chinatrust luck in its Canadian venture.

The Late Bill Stewart

[Lou Sekora, Liberal, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is with profound regret that I rise to acknowledge the sudden passing of a city councillor who served two British Columbia communities.

Bill Stewart served the city of Port Coquitlam as an alderman from 1983 to 1994. Having moved to the East Kootenays to pursue a new career opportunity, he was elected in 1996 to serve in the city of Kimberley as a city councillor.

Bill Stewart died suddenly in hospital on Sunday, May 16. He is survived by his wife, Alma, a son and a daughter. Bill Stewart served the public well. He will be missed.

Community Access Centres

[Andy Scott, Liberal, Fredericton, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to recognize the community access centre in my home of Barkers Point, New Brunswick.

It has been named New Brunswick's community access centre for 1999. It is located in what I have often referred to as the best elementary school in the world, a school that has served my family and friends for generations, a school that has had a recent addition of a gymnasium in the name of my father and where my sister teaches kindergarten. I can say that it has made a big difference in our community.

This centre opened in 1997 at the Barkers Point Elementary School and assists local people who wish to access the Internet and take computer courses.

For his contribution, I would like to single out site manager Jim Wilson for his tremendous efforts. As well it should be noted that Jeff Gagnon, a grade 12 student who works at the centre part time, has designed a system that will forward information directly to Industry Canada.

To Jim, Jeff, teachers and students I say congratulations in 1999.

Trade

[Sarmite Bulte, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last week I had the pleasure of attending the first ever Canada-U.S. businesswomen's trade summit in Toronto.

Co-chaired by the Minister for International Trade, U.S. Secretary of Commerce William Daley, and the administrator of U.S. Small Business Administration, Aida Alvarez, this summit allowed Canadian and American businesswomen to develop cross-border business.

Approximately 250 women whose businesses had been identified as export ready from the United States and Canada attended the summit. The summit witnessed the signing of many partnership and business agreements. It also gave participants a forum to share ideas, resources and best practices. In addition, the summit provided an opportunity to discuss international trade issues and public policies of relevance to women entrepreneurs.

I commend the organizing team, spearheaded by Astrid Pregel of the Canadian Embassy in Washington, for its vision in conceiving the summit and I thank our partners, the corporate sponsors, for making this vision a reality.

Liberal Party Of Canada

[Werner Schmidt, Reform, Kelowna, BC]

Mr. Speaker, since the meetings of the Liberal western rescue team are closed to the public and by invitation only, we had to send in spies to hear what was said.

Here are the top 10 phrases overheard at their meetings last week.

No. 10: “Yes, the member from Coquitlam is a yes-man”.

No. 9: “Yes, we are all yes-men”.

No. 8: “Sure you can come to the meeting. We will just need your Liberal membership number, proof of candidacy and a small donation”.

No. 7: “We have done plenty for the west. Remember the national energy program”.

No. 6: “When I heard we were coming out west I thought we were going to Winnipeg”.

No. 5: “Table for four, please”.

No. 4: “We are looking to acquire some land in the Nanoose Bay area”.

No. 3: “The next time the Prime Minister tells me how to vote I will be sure to pass along your concerns”.

No. 2: “Wow, the railroad does go all the way to B.C. When did that happen?”

No. 1: “Man, we don't have a chance”.

The Economy

[Aileen Carroll, Liberal, Barrie—Simcoe—Bradford, ON]

Mr. Speaker, a report of a study undertaken by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities found that Canada's poorest citizens have been hardest hit by the continuing drop in family incomes.

The poorest 10% of residents in 16 Canadian cities saw their total income drop by 18.8% from 1992 to 1996. During the same period the top 10% of Canadian earners saw their total incomes rise by 6.8%. The old notion that if the affluent are doing well then everybody else will be doing well is clearly not happening in Canadian cities.

We do not have to concern ourselves with the families that pay the highest taxes. We do have to be concerned about the quality of life of Canadians who pay half or more of their incomes for housing as their numbers are increasing.

Affordable housing and adequacy of income are basic determinants—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Terrebonne—Blainville.

Peace In Yugoslavia

[Paul Mercier, Bloc, Terrebonne—Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am extremely proud to draw attention to a project with great promise, which was thought up and carried out by the young people of my riding.

In these times of great upheaval in Yugoslavia, the students of the Jeunes du Monde school in Terrebonne have decided to work toward peace.

They made up a white flag symbolizing a call for peace in the Yugoslav conflict, addressed to both President Milosevic and to NATO. This flag, signed by all the students and all the staff of the school, constitutes a repudiation of violence.

This symbolic flag will be sent to NATO in the next few days on behalf of young people who wish to propose alternatives to the use of violence in conflict resolution.

I salute the efforts of these representatives of our youth who want to introduce a new era of peace and brotherly love.

World Population Day

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval West, QC]

Mr. Speaker, July 11 has been designated by the United Nations as World Population Day.

The objective of this day is to raise awareness of population and development issues such as international migration, whether voluntary or involuntary.

In recent years there has been a marked increase in the number of people crossing international borders. Some of them are in search of better lives from economic and social points of view, while others are fleeing internal or external conflicts or major natural disasters.

I invite my colleagues to support the action plan of the International Conference on Population and Development, which calls upon all of the developed countries to assist the developing countries in implementing economic development strategies that include programs relating to health, education and good governance.

Justice

[Jay Hill, Reform, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, when people visit Canada we expect them to follow our laws. If they do not they are punished according to the Criminal Code of Canada. The same goes for Canadians visiting or living in foreign countries. Citizenship does not count when they have committed crimes and the law of the land prevails.

In the case of Stanley Faulder, he knew the penalty for murder in the state of Texas was death. We was tried, convicted and sentenced. Unfortunately we no longer execute cold blooded killers in Canada, but in Texas it is the law and it must be respected.

Access to information documents reveal that the Department of Foreign Affairs has wasted roughly 50,000 taxpayer dollars trying to save the life of this murderer. This does not include money spent by the justice department or the recent MP clemency tour.

I do not believe our justice system is such a shining example that we should be telling the Americans what is wrong with theirs. The fact is a 75 year old Texas woman was killed by a Canadian, and in Texas the penalty is death. End of story.

Summit Of The Americas

[Claude Drouin, Liberal, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on May 14, the Prime Minister of Canada announced that Quebec City had been selected to hold the next Summit of the Americas in 2001.

This summit will bring together the elected heads of democratic governments in North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.

The magnificent location of Quebec City will provide an excellent overview of Canada's heritage, diversity and dynamism for our neighbours and the world as a whole.

The Summit of the Americas, it must be recalled, will mark the end of a number of years' work by Canada within the hemisphere.

We therefore wish Quebec City good luck in organizing this summit. We are quite sure that this event, so important for our fine country of Canada, will be a great success.

The Environment

[Rick Laliberte, NDP, Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's environment commissioner tabled his third report in a row which slams the Liberal government's environment record.

The entire Liberal government and its cabinet share this disgrace: the finance minister for a program review that cancelled environment as a priority, the industry minister for putting business interests ahead of ecosystem protection, and the health minister for refusing to identify toxic chemicals which poison Canada's children.

The commissioner states that “we are paying the price in terms of our health and our legacy for future generations”.

What does all this talk and no action mean for Canadians? Dangerous chemicals are found in the food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe, and children are left in toxic sites.

The Standing Committee on the Environment shared the commissioner's concern and told the government to enforce the laws which protect Canada and its environment and not buckle to industry demands.

The Prime Minister and the Liberal cabinet are the prime suspects for destroying our environment and harming our health.

Multiple Sclerosis

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, May is multiple sclerosis awareness month.

While treatment continues to improve and new medication helps to change the course of the disease and reduce symptoms, we still cannot, even today, either cure or prevent multiple sclerosis.

This illness affects 50,000 people in Canada, particularly women, and arrives unannounced causing distress to all those in its path. Neither the most solid family life nor the best orchestrated career plans escape its shadow.

In support of the work of the many researchers, our financial contributions are important, but they can never replace our physical support and our affection, which make the suffering of MS victims and their families a little easier to bear.

To all MS sufferers, I would say there is hope, hope that pushes us on in the fight to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Agriculture

[Rick Borotsik, Progressive Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to put the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food on notice, informing him of a devastating natural disaster which continues to affect the residents of southwestern Manitoba.

Farmers are especially hit hard by the flooding. Two million acres of land is in jeopardy and the area is only one rain away from total disaster.

June 15 is the crop insurance deadline. If crops are not seeded by then my riding could suffer a potential loss of $400 million. This could be devastating to an industry in my riding that is still suffering from the impact of a farm income crisis and the problems with the federal government's AIDA program.

As I have mentioned before in the House, as in last year's ice storm in Ontario and Quebec I urge the government to apply the same consistency in the level of compensation to those affected by yet another natural disaster in my riding.

The livelihood of farmers and other businesses in the area is at stake. It is time for the federal government to start developing a long term disaster assistance program. If the Prime Minister's western Liberal task force wants to listen to western Canadians, now is the time to listen.

Huntington Disease

[Ovid Jackson, Liberal, Bruce—Grey, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that May has been proclaimed Huntington Disease Awareness Month by the Huntington Society of Canada.

Huntington disease is a fatal hereditary brain disorder which slowly destroys both the mind and body. Symptoms include involuntary jerking, slurred speech, and mental and emotional difficulties which relentlessly become worse over the lengthy course of the disease. There is no cure or effective treatment. One in every thousand Canadians is affected by Huntington disease: he or she has it, is at risk of developing it, or is caring for someone who has it.

The mandate of the Huntington Society of Canada is to improve the quality of life for these people through service and education programs.

Please join me in wishing the Huntington Society of Canada a very successful Huntington Disease Awareness Month.

Publishing Industry

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, only the Liberals can call stiffing the taxpayers a win-win. The Minister of Canadian Heritage has failed again and Canadians are stuck with the bill once again. This is going to mean millions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies.

Just like Bubbles Galore , this is going to cost taxpayers dollars galore. Just how many dollars would that be?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for her resounding support for Canadian culture.

One of the things that Canadians have told us very firmly is that culture is more than commodities, culture is more than pork bellies and culture deserves the support of the government.

I am very proud that as a result of the Bill C-55 package the Prime Minister and the Government of Canada have committed to ongoing support for the Canadian magazine industry.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, a lot of the minister's colleagues are not terribly impressed by what is going on.

This is a victory for the government, sort of like the GST was a victory: both proud heritage moments. The minister lost and Canadians lost, and we all know it. Taxpayers now get to buy magazines whether they like them or not.

Why it is that Canadians always get left holding the bag for this minister's cultural crusades?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I am afraid the hon. member is going to have to get her story straight. On the one hand she is claiming that Canadians lost and on the other hand she is claiming that it is the fault of the Minister of Canadian Heritage.

The fact is that Canada won today. The trade minister, the culture minister, the Prime Minister and the Government of Canada won. Why? Because for the first time in history the Americans have recognized that we have the right in trade to protect our culture.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I bet those Americans are just trembling in their boots today. Oh yes, they must be.

Taxpayers would rather have their own money in their own pockets instead of having the heritage minister confiscate millions of dollars for 19th century protectionist policies. Taxpayers today are beginning to feel a little bit like a dog trapped in a car on a hot summer's day.

Why will the heritage minister not just let Canadian advertisers choose the magazines they want to support?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, better a dog than a pig.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is a real class act over there. The government constantly says that it cannot afford tax relief, but it always has millions of dollars to bail out the heritage minister. Now it is millions on a useless protectionist policy to avoid the trade war caused by her incompetence.

On behalf of taxpayers who are footing the bill for this face-saving disaster, how much is all of this going to cost?